The present invention is directed to a self-retaining trocar sleeve and the sleeve in combination with a trocar.
In laparoscopy, it is desirable to have a sleeve member for penetrating through a wall of the abdomen and the peritoneum, which sleeve member will remain in place after withdrawing a trocar. Examples of such sleeves are disclosed in German No. OS 22 18 901 and German No. OS 29 23 105. In both of these sleeves, the outer surface is provided with retaining means, which is formed by a helical thread or wire on the outer surface, which has a pitch that allows screwing the trocar sleeve into the abdomen wall. Disadvantages of these sleeves are that they do not provide surfaces that are easily grasped by the operator when inserting the trocar and sleeve combination. Another disadvantage, particularly with the sleeve disclosed in German No. OS 22 18 901, is that the length is such that when performing certain operations, the length of the sleeve interferes with the area in which the operation is being conducted by the instruments inserted through the sleeve.